[You have brought back high level magic engineering and further improved upon it, allowing you to create the highest rank level 8 artifact! Perhaps this is the beginning of a legend. Proficiency in all mana-related skills have increased significantly, and Magic has increased by 50!]

The moment they finished engraving a magic circle onto the last component, it synchronized and combined with the core. It was then the message popped up before Lee Shin-Woo.

Having made a great contribution to the endeavor, Kratia’s mind went blank from the enormity of it all. Rem, who'd help them both, gained an increased understanding of Golems.

"Shin-Woo...!"

"...Nice."

[That's a relief, Master.]

They briefly exchanged looks and then, as if they had agreed to do so beforehand, reached out to the now completed Golem simultaneously. However, once they started reading the description of the Golem, Lee Shin-Woo and Kratia began to wonder whether they had actually succeeded or not.

[Lv8 Titan Bone Golem]

[A Golem that personifies a constantly erupting volcano. The Titan was created to satisfy man's greed to control mother nature. In the process of resurrecting the Golem, the power of the sun has been reinforced, and only a human who can survive the intense heat can properly control this Golem.]

[Fully Charged. Upon activation, the core can run for a total of 240 seconds. After that, the core requires 60 days to recharge.]

[If the user is lower than level 8, their stats will be temporarily adjusted to make them one. However, this may end up being detrimental if the body cannot properly handle that increased level of power.]

The core had been compressed to the limit and could fit into the palm of his hand. Lee Shin-Woo had many questions; the explanation left much to be desired.

Nevertheless, he had gotten a few key points clearly: that the core could only be used for 240 seconds before it had to recharge for 60 days!

"Keuk... But now's not the time to be hesitating!"

"Do your best!"

[Good luck, Master!]

Lee Shin-Woo grabbed the completed Golem and rushed out while infusing the core with his mana. Once he was completely synchronized with the core, he activated the Golem!

[Beginning synchronization.]

The core, which had been dormant until now, suddenly radiated a blinding light, and the outer layers peeled off to cover Lee Shin-Woo one layer at a time.

Every piece he'd equipped was unsummoned. The Golem's external components wrapped around Lee Shin-Woo's skull, arms, ribs, pelvis, and feet. It looked as though he was wearing a set of red bone armor.

[Synchronization complete. Activating the Titan.]

The core attached to his chest and shone even brighter than before. No matter how he looked at it, he was definitely turning into a giant hero. His thought was interrupted by an emerging heat. The core’s heat was spreading throughout the external components!

The magic circles, which were substitutes for Mana Breathing and had turned a small tribe into Giants over centuries, activated simultaneously, causing the Golem to grow in an instant.

[Activating Titan. Remaining time: 240 seconds.]

Lee Shin-Woo could feel the exponential growth. While his body was still the same inside the Golem, he had synced up perfectly with the Golem’s body through the core, and could feel it like it was his own.

Did the Giants always see the world from so high up? I see... It makes sense that Arema Steelworker would become so arrogant.

His growth tapered off once he reached 7 meters tall. He extended his senses throughout his entire body and realized that his five senses had also been completely synchronized with the Golem as well. The ground seemed so far away when he looked down. At that moment, he could understand what the Giants must feel like.

It's hot.

Despite his High Rank Fire Resistance, it felt hot inside the Golem due to the Bone of Lunatic Scarlet used as its material, but at the same time, it felt refreshing; his mana was being amplified and circulated throughout the Golem.

The pleasant feeling offset any pain he felt, and getting over it didn't take very long. It was suffocating. It felt as though his mana was turning everything in the world into heat as it absorbed the core’s energy. It would be most apt to describe this feeling as omnipotence.

[Temporarily increasing Strength and Endurance by 3,000, and Agility and Magic by 2,000.]

Lee Shin-Woo's level was adjusted to level 8, and his stats had been amplified to match the Golem. His original stats were 7,922, but now, they amounted to 17,822 in total, instantaneously granting him the power of a mid-rank level 8!

The fact that it increased my stats so much tells me how weak I am. The more I grow, the smaller the gap between my stats and those of the Golem’s, and the less the transformation would have to grant me.

It frustrated him that he had to borrow the Golem's strength to fight Metafel head to head, but he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. The strength would be his for the moment, which made him realize just how powerful a level 8 truly was!

[Hoo... Heup!]

The moment Lee Shin-Woo stepped forward as one with the Golem, he felt a change occur within the Giants fighting desperately on the frontlines.

Arogan, who had been eaten thinking it was the end, had been reborn with a body entirely made of bones, becoming stronger than ever. Moreover, Ellata had evolved as well!

[Oh Titan!]

[Huaaaaaaaahp!]

They weren’t the only ones. The other Giants, hidden away within their territory and witnessed the Titan's rebirth, began to transform as well. Arogan and Ellata were the first to become connected to him, and connections formed between him and the other Giants through his darkness mana one after another.

Once he'd become a Titan, his mana covered the entire battlefield, changing the very roots of the Giants' existence!

[You have resurrected the Titan. The Giants realized that they hadn't waited in vain, and are no longer disillusioned. They are now capable of dreaming something new, and are no longer undead trapped by death; they have conquered death and been reborn as Titans.]

[You have acquired the title, 'Descendant of the Titans'. All stats have increased by 15. All Titans who follow you are buffed by 10%.]

[Through the item of your creation, you have completely broken the hierarchy designated by the goddess. Rebellion activates while you’re operating the Titan, further increasing your stats by 16%!]

Several messages appeared, but Lee Shin-Woo felt more overwhelmed by the links formed by darkness mana between him and the Giants.

He felt the sorrow and tenacity of these Giants, who had waited for the Titan's return for so many years! All of that was in the past now. Lee Shin-Woo had given them the courage to take a new step forward. They turned to look at Lee Shin-Woo in unison.

Lee Shin-Woo was the Titan's Descendant, the very personification of the word 'miracle' to them! At that moment, he had become their king, and it was now his duty to lead them!

[The Titan is...]

[Moving!]

[Hooo....!]

Lee Shin-Woo took another step forward under their gazes, wielding a gigantified Drake Horn Lance that matched the size of the Titan Golem.

[By gigantifying the Lv5 Drake Horn Lance, its attack power has increased exponentially. And by absorbing the overwhelming heat, it has temporarily elevated to Lv6.]

Now that he wielded such intense fire, he couldn't use a lightning weapon, so he chose the Drake Horn Lance, a high rank weapon that could be used with any element.

It was indeed a good choice. Fire concentrated on the lance the moment he held it in his hand, enveloping it in red. It was as though the weapon had synchronized with the Golem as well!

[Heup!]

Lee Shin-Woo softly leaped. Bisher, Shino, and Chi Paul moved out of the way, and Ellata struck the ground, creating a mounting block for him. The moment he set foot on that, Arogan, who had been fighting against Metafel, grabbed onto Metafel and threw him into the air.

[Kiihaaaaaaaaaaaa!]

Metafel's tongues let out a frightening sound as they were severed simultaneously. Crying out, he whirled round and round in the air. It shot its tongues out at Lee Shin-Woo as soon as he spotted him, as though to say 'nice of you to come'.

However, the Titan's heat wouldn't allow his tongues to approach. Moreover, the heat’s area of dominance was growing wider and wider, so the closer Metafel got, the more his body was lit aflame!

The fire ain't half bad. It's the best...especially when fighting him!

Just by existing, the Golem's body prevented Metafel from attacking, and the flames would continuously chip away at Metafel's resistance. This authority, above all else, proved to Lee Shin-Woo that this Golem was indeed level 8!

With access to the full ability of the body, Lee Shin-Woo controlled the flames with his mind and gathered all of them to the tip of his lance. It was such an impressive display of fine mana control that anyone would marvel at his skill, but it was as natural as breathing for Lee Shin-Woo at this point.

[Kihik, Kiheeeeeeeehk! In the end, you seek to kill me!]

[Hoo... Heuaaahp!]

Lee Shin-Woo condensed the energy to the maximum and shot the Drake Horn Lance at Metafel. While it wasn’t imbued with lightning, the attack still embodied the essence of Bursting Thunder. He had also applied Shadow Horn to the attack at the same time.

[Kuhahk!]

[Critical Hit!]

[Intermediate Shadow Horn is now Lv9. All stats have increased by 6.]

[High Rank Fire is now Lv2. Magic has increased by 20.]

The lance pierced through the center of Metafel's body, and the flames erupted and swallowed him whole. The white hot flames were so bright that it was difficult to even look straight at them.

[Kik... Don't think...that you're above me!]

Despite that, Metafel didn't die. He struggled to consume the flames in order to make them his own. While his tongues were constantly burned away, more would come out from all over his body to compensate; there was nothing but hatred in his tongues as he continuously licked the flames.

[Beyond the power of a corps... An absolute being!]

[Heuup. Heup!]

Lee Shin-Woo thrusted his lance downward with great force to pin Metafel to the ground. Like he'd previously done to Metafel’s subordinate, Setoin, Lee Shin-Woo had buried the lance deep to stop the general from moving. He was overpowering Metafel, so much so that one would wonder if they were truly both level 8s!

[Kyaaaaaaahk!]

It was nothing but Metafel’s poor luck that got him here. If he had been given a little bit more time, he might've become a beast that devoured the entire Empire. Unfortunately, he was forced to face a Titan before that could happen, and the Titan had used the element most disadvantageous for him.

[Remaining time: 118 seconds.]

[That's plenty of time.]

After landing, Lee Shin-Woo checked how much time he had left and muttered leisurely. He activated Bone Armory again, summoning two more Drake Horn Lances in both hands.

[Heup!]

[Guaaaaaahk!]

Two more lances were buried into the struggling Metafel. Lee Shin-Woo would’ve targeted Metafel’s vital parts if he knew what they were, but now that Metafel's body had turned into all tongues, he had no choice but to do things the hard way.

[You bastard, the Empire will...!]

[Hahp!]

Lee Shin-Woo could summon eight weapons total, and he did, embedding all eight Drake Horn Lances into Metafel, unleashing the Golem's heat through them. It looked like the scene of a witch burning.

[The Archmage... will... kill...!]

[Yeah. Wait patiently. I'll kill him at some point and send him over to you.]

Even though Metafel's entire body was burning, he hadn’t given up on consuming the flames. Lee Shin-Woo then grabbed two of the embedded spears and concentrated his overwhelming heat onto them, making it difficult to even make out Metafel's original form.

[The Mercenary King's...]

[...You should've stayed a mercenary.]

Metafel boasted a frightening tenacity, but Lee Shin-Woo detonated the eight lances and killed him as he spoke.

A tremendous amount of heat was condensed in a single spot to burn his body to bits. While Metafel was disappearing, Lee Shin-Woo noticed that Metafel had successfully devoured a portion of the flames. It made him wonder what would've happened had the Titan's flames been a tiny bit weaker.

[...Hoo.]

In any case, Metafel was dead. After making sure that Metafel wasn't responding anymore, Lee Shin-Woo looked up and declared to his troops, who were all looking at him.

[Good work everyone. We won.]

The battle ended.

The long battle in the glacial mountains had finally come to an end.